Gym Workout Plan for Beginners in India: A 3-Day Full-Body Week
Search for a gym workout plan for beginners and you get hundreds of plans and little reasoning. This page gives one plan, three days a week, built on the position stand that sets out how beginners should train, and says which numbers come from research and which are our own choices.
Prefer Hindi? Our जिम बिगिनर वर्कआउट प्लान is a separate 4-week, 3-days-a-week beginner plan written in Hindi.
The short answer
Train the whole body three days a week on non-consecutive days (for example Monday, Wednesday, Friday). Start each session with the big multi-joint exercises and finish with the small ones. Use a weight you can lift 8 to 12 times with good form, rest about 1 to 2 minutes between sets (the position stand gives that rest for 6-12 repetition-maximum training; take longer if you need it to keep good form), and add load slowly. The American College of Sports Medicine position stand, Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults (Med Sci Sports Exerc 2009) recommends exactly this range for novices: loads of 8-12 repetition maximum, a training frequency of 2-3 days a week, large muscle groups and multi-joint exercises before small ones, and a 2-10% increase in load once you can do one or two repetitions more than the target. The World Health Organization 2020 guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour (Br J Sports Med 2020) recommend regular muscle-strengthening activity for all adults.
The weekly layout
Two sessions, alternated: A-B-A in odd weeks and B-A-B in even weeks, with a rest day between workouts.
| Week | Mon | Wed | Fri |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1, 3, 5 | Session A | Session B | Session A |
| 2, 4, 6 | Session B | Session A | Session B |
Session A and Session B
The order follows the position stand: multi-joint exercises first, single-joint and core work last. The number of sets (2 to 3) is our choice; the position stand gives the repetition range, not a set count for beginners. All eleven exercises below are in the NYUS exercise library, each with a demo.
| # | Session A exercise | Sets x reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dumbbell Goblet Squat | 3 x 8-12 |
| 2 | Dumbbell Bench Press | 3 x 8-12 |
| 3 | Cable Lat Pulldown Full Range Of Motion | 3 x 8-12 |
| 4 | Low Glute Bridge On Floor | 3 x 8-12 |
| 5 | Dumbbell Seated Shoulder Press (Parallel Grip) | 2 x 8-12 |
| 6 | Dead Bug | 2 x 10 each side |
| # | Session B exercise | Sets x reps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sled 45° Leg Press | 3 x 8-12 |
| 2 | Incline Push-Up | 3 x 8-12 |
| 3 | Cable Seated Row | 3 x 8-12 |
| 4 | Walking Lunge | 3 x 8-12 per leg |
| 5 | Dumbbell Seated Shoulder Press | 2 x 8-12 |
| 6 | Dead Bug | 2 x 10 each side |
On the first sessions, ask a trainer to check your form on the goblet squat and the two shoulder presses, and start lighter than you think you need to. If you have an injury, pain, a medical condition, or are pregnant, ask your doctor before you start. This plan is the same for women and men: the position stand is written for healthy adults, and you set the weights from your own strength.
How to add weight
When you can do one or two repetitions more than the top of the range (for example 13 or 14 reps where the plan says 8-12) on your sets, raise the load by 2 to 10%. On a 20 kg dumbbell that is 0.4 to 2.0 kg, so in most gyms the next dumbbell up is the right step. If you cannot reach 8 reps, go back down.
What to eat around it
One food number only: the ICMR-NIN protein RDA for healthy adults is 0.83 g per kg of body weight a day, which the A Brief Note on Nutrient Requirements for Indians (RDA and EAR), 2020 works out to 54.0 g a day for a 65 kg sedentary man and 45.7 g for a 55 kg sedentary woman (Table 2a, p. 5). It is a reference figure, not a gym target. See how much protein per day to build muscle for the Indian-food side.
Rest days and staying consistent
The position stand's frequency for beginners is 2 to 3 days a week, not every day; on the other days a walk is fine. When you want to train more often, see how many days a week to work out and whether a push pull legs split suits a beginner. For the habit side, see the workout consistency guide and the recovery and rest days guide.
How NYUS helps you follow it
NYUS is an AI diet and workout coach. You tell it where you train (full gym, home with dumbbells, bodyweight only or minimal equipment) and how many days a week you can train (2 to 6), and it builds a plan from your goal, body and schedule. On the workout screen each exercise shows what you did last time ("Last: ...") and the current target, and you can log each set, use the rest timer, see your personal bests and swap an exercise in your plan. The exercise library has 1,300+ exercises with demos. NYUS does not promise automatic weight increases: you decide the next load, and the 2-10% rule above is a good guide.
Build your own plan in NYUS
Tell NYUS your goal, where you train and how many days a week, and get a workout plan to follow and log. An AI diet and workout coach built around Indian food. 30-day free trial, then ₹499/month, no card needed to start. No ads, no data sold.
Join the NYUS waitlistFrequently asked questions
How many days a week should a beginner go to the gym?
Two to three days a week is the training frequency the American College of Sports Medicine recommends for novice resistance training. This plan uses three non-consecutive days.
How many reps and sets should a beginner do?
The position stand recommends loads of 8 to 12 repetition maximum for novices; this plan uses 2 to 3 sets, which is our own choice, with about 1 to 2 minutes of rest between sets (the position stand pairs that rest with 6-12 repetition-maximum training; rest longer if you need it for good form).
Is this gym workout plan different for women?
No. The position stand covers healthy adults, and a beginner plan is set by your own strength. Start light and ask a trainer to check your form.
Can I do a beginner plan at home?
Yes. NYUS asks where you train (full gym, home with dumbbells, bodyweight only or minimal equipment) and builds the plan around that, so the same structure can be done with dumbbells or your own bodyweight.
Sources (read 22 October 2026)
- American College of Sports Medicine position stand, Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults (Med Sci Sports Exerc 2009): novice loads 8-12 RM, frequency 2-3 d/wk, sequence large before small muscle groups and multi-joint before single-joint, 2-10% load increase when 1-2 repetitions over the target (abstract; DOI 10.1249/MSS.0b013e3181915670, PubMed 19204579, read 22 Oct 2026).
- World Health Organization 2020 guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour (Br J Sports Med 2020): all adults should do regular muscle-strengthening activity (abstract; DOI 10.1136/bjsports-2020-102955, PubMed 33239350).
- ICMR-NIN, A Brief Note on Nutrient Requirements for Indians (RDA and EAR), 2020, Table 2a (PDF p. 5): protein RDA 0.83 g/kg/day, 54.0 g/day (65 kg sedentary man) and 45.7 g/day (55 kg sedentary woman).
- The set counts, the Session A and B exercise choices and the week layout are NYUS's own and are not from the position stand. Exercise names checked against the NYUS exercise library (1,309 entries); app behaviour read in the app code on 22 Oct 2026, see the NOTES file.